I LOVE OWS
YOUR STORIES
Every issue we ask you to tell us why you love open water swimming. This issue we hear from Amy Jost, who has been using H2Open to help her achieve her goals
I'm the kind of person who's always got mat ed, wet hair anytime she's near water. I can't be close to this powerful
element without indulging in it. The lure of the water keeps me hooked. I’ve always loved swimming, but started to get serious about it about 20 years ago, when I took part in my fi rst boat-assisted lake crossing in Germany – 3.14km. I’ve been hooked ever since. Open water swimming means so much to me. I think the main reason is freedom – I have space and distance from my everyday troubles, which I gladly leave on the shore. But also there's a rebelliousness to it that at racts me. I can go where others don't dare and I oſt en feel like a teenager on a joy ride.
When H2Open came out in February this year, I subscribed immediately. I’ve got three dog-eared and well-worn issues in my swim bag that I drag to the beaches here in Switzerland. I pull them out while waiting (oſt en in vain) for the sun to take the chill off my body before I plunge into a cold, Alpine lake.
Illustration © Emily Davies 2011
I HAVE SPACE AND DISTANCE FROM MY EVERYDAY TROUBLES, WHICH I GLADLY LEAVE ON THE SHORE
I’m a 48-year-old woman who usually swims alone, so reading about other crazy swimmers in H2Open has been a sort of homecoming for me. Usually, Swim Vacation and Swim Trek holidays are about the only time I get to meet, talk with and share ideas and tips with other open water swimmers, but many of those folks are triathletes, so I’m oſt en the least athletic and one of the oldest on such vacations. My goals always seem a bit far off to most of my co-holidaymakers who just want to improve their race times. A few years ago I wanted to swim from my hometown to the other end of Zug lake. I took a waterproof backpack and put a bus pass, some fl ipfl ops, 500ml of water and my mobile phone in it and off I swam. Seven kilometres and several hours later, cramping stopped me from reaching my goal. The next year I thought, ‘I can top 7km!’ and decided to shoot for 10km, while stopping at 3km and 7km to drink (more than 500ml of water) and warm up on the shore. I reached my goal that year. This summer’s goal was to swim the whole way from my hometown to the other end of the lake – 15k. I had planned to make stops to warm up and drink more water, like last year, but what
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I hadn’t even considered, prior to reading H2Open, was replacing electrolytes, eating carbs or managing my body temperature. However – aſt er reading articles called ‘Power Up!’ (April/May) and ‘Sweating it Out’ (July) on these topics – I adapted my plans. On 17 August 2011 I managed to swim all 15km in one day. I'll be turning 50 in two years. I'm thinking of swimming 50km over
several days to mark the occasion, but haven’t fi rmed up the details yet. I'm hoping to learn Total Immersion freestyle to add to my TI breast stroke in order to increase my distances. I've been drinking a lot of lake water already this summer trying to master it. One thing is certain about my plans, though. I’ll be sure to keep reading H2Open in the hope there’ll be more helpful information to help me reach my next goal. Keep up the good work and thanks for not forget ing about us – the average, but passionate open water swimmers. ○
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swimming, fi
t4swimming.com. Send 600 words and a photo of yourself to
info@h2openmagazine.com
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Reader Amy Jost is an American living in Switzerland. She has been swimming in open water for more than 20 years.
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